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Opening the Circle

The High Priestess goes to each of the four directions in turn, and draws a Banishing Pentacle, saying,

Guardians of the East (South, West, North), Powers of Air
(Fire, Water, Earth), we thank you
For joining in our circle
And we adk for your blessing
As you depart
May there be peace between us
Now and forever. Blessed be.

She raises her athame to the sky and touches it to the earth, then opens her arms and says,

The circle is open, but unbroken,
May the peace of the Goddess
Go in your hearts,
Mery meet, and merry part.
And metty meet again. Blessed be.

Black Moon Ritual, Conquering the Shadows,
written by Sor.: Zauberkraut

[ed. note-- While this ritual is much more CM than what I prefer, the usefulness of confronting those things that scare you cannot be overstressed, something which terrifies you has power over you. Healthy caution is a good thing. I do not think unreasoning fear is --Amythyst]

Dealing with ones fears and socalled shadows is essential to the aspiring magician. Only through continously facing and conquering our shadows can we put ourselves truly in charge of our lives. Being in touch with, and realistic about “the dark night of the soul” is also a tool against the most dangerous, and common, sickness of the magician: megalomania and paranoia. Continue reading →

Harvest Home Ritual 1987 By Michael Fix

Circle Casting (High Priestess) (Spoken while harvesting imaginary grain in perimeter of circle)

Birds circle hungrily overhead As through harvested fields we tread. The smokehouse fires and burning leaves Their scents do spiral and interweave. Ripples circle in our wake As rice we harvest from a lake. The dusty Earth now shorn of locks Swirls as pass our fattened flocks. Much bounty may our harvest see As we cast, so mote it be! Continue reading →

PRE-INITIATORY DEDICATION RITUAL

by Ashta’ar-Arthura and Cleindori for the Proteus lineage and anyone else who wants to use it.

Premise: “Every Witch is a Pagan; not every Pagan is a Witch.”
There are many ways to honor Nature in our lives. For some, regular participation in Pagan circles is a way to stay attuned to seasonal rhythms, an enrichment and support for their real work in the world, a way of finding community. An artist, a doctor, a mother, a counselor – such people may find joy and sustenance in Pagan celebration eight times a year, or even at each Moon, but wish to pursue it no farther. They are the Earth Mother’s children, as fully as are Her priests and priestesses. Their lives contribute as much as ours to the re-creation of Pagan community, the restoration of ecological sanity. A window is not opened by lifting one side. Continue reading →

This is a ceremony we have used a couple of times (with variations to suit the candidate) for the second degree initiation. You will note that it borrows from many sources: Masonic, Gardnerian, Celtic, and Flight of Fancy. We’ve done it robed, sky clad, and some interesting combinations. Seems to work ok either way. If the candidate has done the work, the initiation ceremony is more of a public “rite of passage” or recognition of that fact… the real “initiation” is between the Gods and the candidate, and therefore cannot really be “conferred”. …Gary Dumbauld, High Priest, Hernesgaard Circle

A ceremony to recognise completion of the 2nd degree course of study

The Circle is cast as usual. All are properly prepared and purified. High Priestess and High Priest perform the Ceremony in concert. The candidate is brought into the circle by a friend and circled 3 times deosil, ending north of the altar, facing the Priest, who is standing south of the altar (where else?). Continue reading →

** MAGICK 7 — BASIC RITUAL **

‘The first part of every ceremony is the banishing; the second the invoking.’ (–Crowley, Magick, p. 104)

It may be said that ritual is the very heart of magick. For it is through ritual that we achieve our magical results. Ritual is a magical procedure or ceremony we perform in order to change the environment. Usually we think of ritual as bearing on active magick, although certainly, it can also affect passive magick. Most often the change achieved is subjective (it may be subtle) and in the physical world. Outsiders may put them down to coincidence, but the effects are very real. Magical goals for a ritual should not be taken lightly. Continue reading →